Agricultural spraying capparatus



June23, 1964 E. SWANSON 3,138,329

AGRICULTURAL SPRAYING APPARATUS Filed Nov. 19, 1962 s Sheets-Sheet 1 lNlEIVTOR ELY SWANSON E 1'. Z; Au ,1 86. rrow Er,

June 23, 1964 E. SWANSON AGRICULTURAL SPRAY-INC APPARATUS 3 Sheets-Sheet2 Filed Nov. 19, 1962 'ELY SWANSON June 23, 1964 E. SWANSON AGRICULTURALsPRAYING APPARATUS 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed Nov. 19, 1962 SWANSON ELYUnited States Patent 3,138,329 AGRICULTURAL SPRAYIN G APPARATUS ElySwanson, Winfield, British Columbia, Canada Filed Nov. 19, 1962, Ser.No. 238,356 15 Claims. (Cl. 23977) This invention relates to apparatusparticularly designed for spraying insecticides and fungicides on fruittrees but is not necessarily limited for such uses. In particular, thisinvention relates to a spraying apparatus in which insecticides orfungicides are airborne outwardly from the machine to the objects to besprayed.

Spraying apparatus of this type is usually constructed with two airblast units mounted to rotate independently of each other in order todeliver air blasts in any direction radially outwardly from one side tothe other of the apparatus. Such apparatus requires a duplication ofparts which is expensive and does not, at all times, deliver the samevolume and velocity of air from each of the air blast units. The presentapparatus, being relatively inexpensive to construct and to maintain,provides a stronger flow of air, adjustable in lateral direction, thanit has been possible to achieve with similar apparatus of the prior art.

The present apparatus includes dual fan casings located axially side byside and mounted for relative rotation, said casings having adjacentinner walls with a common central inner opening therebetween and outerwalls with central inlet openings therein, each of said casings having aperipheral discharge opening, a fan in and substantially filling thecommon inner opening, said fan including radial blades thereon in eachcasing aligned with the discharge opening thereof, said blades beingadapted to draw air in through the inlet opening of their respectivecasings and to discharge said air through their respective dischargeopenings, and means for directing spray material into and through thedischarge air near each discharge opening to be carried thereby awayfrom the apparatus.

An example of this invention is illustrated in the accompanyingdrawings, in which:

FIGURE 1 is an end elevation of the apparatus;

FIGURE 2 is a side elevation of the apparatus;

FIGURE 3 is a vertical cross section taken on the line 3-3 of FIGURE 2;

FIGURE 4 is a vertical longitudinal section taken substantially on theline 4-4 of FIGURE 3; and

FIGURE 5 is a vertical cross section taken on the line 55 of FIGURE 4.

Referring to the drawings, 1 generally designates spraying apparatusaccording to the present invention which is mounted on a truck ortrailer, not shown, in the usual manner for equipment of this type.Spray material for this apparatus is carried in the usual tankequipment, not shown. The deck or frame 2 of a truck or trailer is shownfor carrying apparatus 1.

Spraying apparatus 1 includes dual fan casings 6 and 7. Casing 6consists of spaced outer and inner walls 3 and 9 connected together atouter edges thereof by a curved peripheral wall 10. Walls 8 and 9converge outwardly in a radial direction to peripheral convoluted walls10, as clearly shown in FIGURE 4. Similarly, casing 7 is formed byoutwardly converging outer and inner walls 12 and 13, and a peripheralconvoluted wall 14. Openings 17 and 18 elongated in a circumferentialdirec- 3,138,329 Patented June 23, 1964 ice tion, are formed inperipheral walls 10 and 14, respectively, of casings 6 and 7, and therespective side walls at these openings are shaped to form dischargeopenings 20 and 21.

By referring to FIGURE 4, it will be seen that inner walls 9 and 13 areabutting annular plates, having circular inner edges 24 and 25respectively, around large central inner openings 27 and 28, wall 9having an external flange 30 along inner edge 24 thereof, so adapted toreceive and slidably hold the inner edge 25 of wall 13, the journal soachieved permitting casings 6 and 7 to rotate relative to each otherwhile retaining said casings in their proper positions relative to eachother. Openings 27 and 28 combine to form a common large opening betweencasings 6 and 7. Outer walls 8 and 12 also are substantially annularplates having inner edges 33 and 34 around central inlet openings 35 and36 which are smaller than the inner openings 27 and 28. Annular flanges39 and 40 project outwardly from inner edges 33 and 34 of walls 8 and12.

Fan casings 6 and 7 are adjustably mounted on vertical frames 42 and 43by means of clamps 44 and 45 which releasably grip outer flanges 39 and40.

A centrifugal fan 47 located in the common opening 2728 between the twofan casings 6 and 7 is fixedly mounted on a central shaft 48 journalledin suitable bearings 49 and 50, mounted on vertical frames 42 and 43.The fan is driven by a pulley arrangement 52 which is powered by asuitable source of power, not shown. The fan comprises two hubs 55 and56 keyed to the shaft 48, two'annular planarily abutting backing plates58 and 59 keyed to the hubs 55 and 56, respectively, and fan blades 62and 63 radiating outwardly from hubs 55 and 56, radially aligned withperipheral outlets 17 and 18, said blades being secured to the backingplates 58 and 59. The backing plates 58 and 59 are fastened to eachother by bolts 66. Outer tips 68 and 69 of the fan blades 62 and 63 donot extend beyond the common periphery 71 of the backing plates 58 and59. The diameter of the periphery 71 of the backing plates is slightlyless than the diameter of the common inner openings 27-28 of casings 6and 7.

Air entering through the axial inlets 35 and 36 is directed by the fanblades radially outwards through openings 17 and 18. There is a tendencyfor a fan of this type to draw air towards the center, there being agreater degree of vacuum at said center than at the outermost part ofthe blades. The air turbulence thus created reduces the fan efficiency.Deflector means are therefore provided in each air inlet to direct theentering air outwardly into the fan blades and away from the hub.

In the preferred form of the invention as illustrated, the backingplates 58 and 59 are convexly shaped on their outer surfaces. air awayfrom the hub and radially outward into the blades. Further deflectingmeans comprises conical rings 75 and 76 supported respectively in inletopenings 35 and 36. Rings 75 and 76 diverge radially towards the tips offan blades 62 and 63. In the present apparatus the conical rings 75 and76 are connected to the outer flanges 39 and 40 by a plurality of spacedrods 78 and 79. The combination of the convexly shaped backing plates 58and 59 and the conical rings 75 and 76 elfectively and smoothlydiverting the air from its entering axial direction radially outwardlyinto the blades.

The convex shape thus deflects the.

In the preferred form of the invention, the blades are of identicalnature, wide at their outward tips and tapering inwardly to the hub, asclearly shown in FIGURE 4, each blade radiating outwardly in an ogeecurve, see FIGURE 3. Each blade is so disposed on its backing plate thatits most radially outward surface convexly faces the direction ofrotation of the fan, said direction of rotation being indicated by arrow82 in FIGURE 3.

The spray material is discharged into the air blast issuing from outlets17 and 18 by a plurality of radially inclined nozzles 85 and 86 whichare fed by pipes 87 and 88. The spray material is pumped from a supplytank, not shown, to nozzles 85 and 86 through pipes 87 and 88.

In operation, the fan 42 draws air into the casings 6 and 7 throughinlets 35 and 36 and impels it radially outwardly through outlets 17 and18 and their discharge nozzles 20 and 21. The spray material suppliedunder pressure is atomized by nozzles 85 and 86 and is carried by theair blast into the trees or other shrubbery to be sprayed. The sprayissuing from nozzles 20 and 21 may be directed in any radial directionsimply by loosening the clamps 44 and 45 and revolving the casings 6 and7 to any angular position relative to the axis of the apparatus, afterwhich the clamps are again tightened.

The combination of the convexly shaped backing plates 58 and 59,deflector rings 75 and 76, and the radially converging fan casingssmoothly directs the flow of air from an axial to a radial direction,with a minimum of turbulence and in combination with the fan blade shapeprovides an air blast of maximum intensity with a mini mum power input,thereby greatly reducing costs of operation. Fabrication costs are alsoreduced as the spraying apparatus is practically one casing which iscentrally divided by the fan. Fan 47 substantially fills the commonopenings 27 and 28 between the two casings so that the air pressure inone casing at a given blade is not affected when said blade passes thedischarge opening of the other casing. Furthermore, as the tips of theblades of the fan do not project radially beyond the common periphery 71of the backing plates, there is little possibility of air being forcedfrom one casing through opening 27 and 28 into the other casing tointerfere with proper movement of the air in the latter casing.

What I claim as my invention is:

1. Agricultural spraying apparatus comprising dual fan casings locatedaxially side by side and mounted for relative rotation, said casingshaving adjacent inner walls with a common central inner openingtherebetween and outer walls with central inlet openings therein, eachof said casings having a peripheral discharge opening, the inner andouter walls of each casing converging towards each other in a radialdirection and to the discharge opening of said casing, a fan in andsubstantially filling the common inner opening, said fan includingradial blades thereon in each casing axially aligned with the inletopening and radially aligned with the discharge opening thereof, saidblades being adapted to draw air in through the inlet opening of theirrespective casings and to discharge said air through their respectivedischarge openings, the converging inner and outer walls of said casingscausing the air to travel radially straight out through the dischargeopenings, and means mounted in each discharge opening for directingspray material into the discharge air as said air travels through theopening to be carried thereby away from the apparatus.

2. Agricultural spraying apparatus as claimed in claim 1 in which theinlet openings are smaller than the common inner opening, and includinga deflector ring in each inlet opening adjacent inner ends of the fanblades and shaped to direct air entering said opening radially towardsand into outer ends of the fan blades.

3. Agricultural spraying apparatus as claimed in claim 1 in which eachfan blade diverges from an inner end radially towards an outer end andis radially in the form of an ogee curve, and each blade is disposedwith its radially outer surface convexly facing the direction ofrotation of the fan.

4. Agricultural spraying apparatus as claimed in claim 3 in which theblades of the fan are mounted on opposite convex faces of a common basepositioned in the common inner opening and extending generally normal tothe rotational axis of the fan, said faces extending outwardly into thefan casings, and said blades extend radially no farther than said commonbase.

5. Agricultural spraying apparatus as claimed in claim 1 in which thefan blades diverge radially from inner to outer ends thereof.

6. Agricultural spraying apparatus as claimed in claim 4 in which thecommon base of the fan comprises a pair of backing plates detachablysecured together at peripheral edges thereof.

7. Agricultural spraying apparatus comprising a pair of casings locatedaxially side by side and circumferentially rotatable relative to eachother, each casing including outer and inner walls converging in aradial direction to a peripheral wall, the inner walls of said casingsbeing near each other and having central inner openings thereincombining to form a common inner opening between the casings and eachouter wall having a central inlet opening therein axially aligned withthe common inner opening, a discharge opening in each peripheral wall, afan in and substantially filling the common inner opening, said fanincluding radial blades thereon in each casing aligned with thedischarge opening thereof, said blades being adapted to draw air inthrough the inlet opening of their respective casings and to dischargesaid air through their respective discharge openings, the converginginner and outer walls of said casings causing the air to travel radiallystraight out through the discharge openings, and means mounted in eachdischarge opening for directing spray material into the discharge air assaid air travels through the opening to be carried thereby away from theapparatus.

8. Agricultural spraying apparatus as claimed in claim 7 including meansrotatably interconnecting the inner walls of the two casings adjacentthe inner openings thereof.

9. Agricultural spraying apparatus as claimed in claim 7 in which theinner walls of the two casings have circular inner edges at the inneropenings of said walls, and including an annular flange on one innerwall at the inner opening thereof projecting into the inner opening ofthe other inner wall rotatably to connect the two casings together, anouter annular flange projecting outwardly from the outer wall of eachcasing near the inlet opening thereof, and clamping means releasablygripping each outer flange to retain the casing of said outer flange inadjusted position relative to the other casing.

10. Agricultural spraying apparatus as claimed in claim 7 in which theblades of the fan diverge axially outwardly in a radial direction.

11. Agricultural spraying apparatus as claimed in claim 10 in which thefan blades are mounted on opposite faces of a common base and projectaxially therefrom, said opposite faces being of convex shape.

12. Agricultural spraying apparatus as claimed in claim 11 in which thefan blades extend radially no farther than the common base of the fan,said base just fitting in the common inner opening of the casings.

13. Agricultural spraying apparatus as claimed in claim 10 including aconical deflector ring mounted in each casing near inner ends of the fanblades and centrally of the inlet opening of said casing, each ringdiverging axially and inwardly towards the fan blades to direct airentering through the inlet opening to and radially into wide outer endsof the blades.

14. Agricultural spraying apparatus as claimed in claim 7 in which theperipheral wall of each casing extends in an outwardly extending spiralconvolution in the direc- 5 6 tion of rotation of the fan from one endof the discharge References Cited in the file of this patent opening insaid wall to the opposite end of the latter UNITED STATES PATENTSopening.

15. Agricultural spraying apparatus as claimed in claim 2661242 Kurzbm1953 7 in which each fan blade diverges from an inner end 5 FOREIGNPATENTS radially towards an outer end and is radially in the form 598823 Canada May 31 1960 of an ogee curve, and each blade is disposed withits radially outer surface convexly facing the direction of rotation ofthe fan.

1. AGRICULTURAL SPRAYING APPARATUS COMPRISING DUAL FAN CASINGS LOCATEDAXIALLY SIDE BY SIDE AND MOUNTED FOR RELATIVE ROTATION, SAID CASINGSHAVING ADJACENT INNER WALLS WITH A COMMON CENTRAL INNER OPENINGTHEREBETWEEN AND OUTER WALLS WITH CENTRAL INLET OPENINGS THEREIN, EACHOF SAID CASINGS HAVING A PERIPHERAL DISCHARGE OPENING, THE INNER ANDOUTER WALLS OF EACH CASING CONVERGING TOWARDS EACH OTHER IN A RADIALDIRECTION AND TO THE DISCHARGE OPENING OF SAID CASING, A FAN IN ANDSUBSTANTIALLY FILLING THE COMMON INNER OPENING, SAID FAN INCLUDINGRADIAL BLADES THEREON IN EACH CASING AXIALLY ALIGNED WITH THE INLETOPENING AND RADIALLY ALIGNED WITH THE DISCHARGE OPENING THEREOF, SAIDBLADES BEING ADAPTED TO DRAW AIR IN THROUGH THE INLET OPENING OF THEIRRESPECTIVE CASINGS AND TO DISCHARGE SAID AIR THROUGH THEIR RESPECTIVEDISCHARGE OPENINGS, THE CONVERGING INNER AND OUTER WALLS OF SAID CASINGSCAUSING THE AIR TO TRAVEL RADIALLY STRAIGHT OUT THROUGH THE DISCHARGEOPENINGS, AND MEANS MOUNTED IN EACH DISCHARGE OPENING FOR DIRECTINGSPRAY MATERIAL INTO THE DISCHARGE AIR AS SAID AIR TRAVELS THROUGH THEOPENING TO BE CARRIED THEREBY AWAY FROM THE APPARATUS.